Trade Deadline Primer: Montreal Canadiens

This is an odd situation where arguably their worst contract is also their biggest trade chip.  Patrik Laine is in the final season of his contract with an $8.7MM cap charge.  He also hasn’t played since mid-October due to an abdominal injury although he’s expected to be activated after the Olympic break.  A high-end scoring threat earlier in his career, he has done okay on that front in Montreal with 20 goals in 57 games over parts of two seasons but on the surface, it appears he’s lost his spot in the lineup.  It will take full retention and perhaps taking a contract back to move him but if GM Kent Hughes wants to add to his roster, he needs to free up some cap space first and that means getting at least some of Laine’s contract off the books.

The Canadiens have really cut the playing time for both Arber Xhekaj and Jayden Struble as of late.  Xhekaj has played below 10 minutes in 12 of his last 18 games while Struble has been below that mark in six of his last 10 outings.  It’s fair to suggest they’re starting to fall out of favor.  However, they’re still just 25 and 24, respectively, with cap hits below $1.5MM apiece; Xhekaj is a pending restricted free agent while Struble has another year on his deal.  A rebuilding team could potentially have a spot to give them a bigger opportunity, especially if they have a defender to spare that head coach Martin St. Louis might trust more.

On the prospect side of things, NHL readiness is an attribute that’s always sought after at the trade deadline.  Defenseman Adam Engstrom fits that bill.  He is within striking distance of the point-per-game mark in the minors and held his own in a pair of stints with Montreal this season, spanning 11 appearances overall.  He’s probably ready for a longer look at the top level and considering he has another year left on his entry-level contract, the 22-year-old should be garnering some attention on the trade front.

Up front, Joshua Roy is in the final season of his entry-level pact and has seen some NHL time in all three of his professional campaigns.  However, given Montreal’s depth up front and in the system, it seems unlikely that he’s a long-term fit on the roster.  Roy is waiver-eligible next season so there are teams that might want to get a look at him beforehand.  Owen Beck is having a tough year in the minors but has some NHL-ready attributes as a center with a high floor which should be appealing to some teams.  Jared Davidson got his first NHL look earlier this season and has a profile of being an energetic fourth liner down the road; again, the Canadiens’ forward depth could make him expendable as well.

Team Needs

1) Top-Line Winger: Let’s use one of their reported wants to start this section off.  With Juraj Slafkovsky anchoring the second line, there’s an opening on the top trio with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield.  It’s clearly not going to be Laine filling that spot.  Zachary Bolduc, Alexandre Texier, and Kirby Dach have all seen time up there with varying degrees of success and Alex Newhook could land there when he comes back from his ankle injury.  But none of those players are optimal fits for a number one line at this point of their respective careers.  This would be a bigger swing

2) Improved Goal Prevention: The Canadiens are 23rd in the league terms of goals allowed with a penalty kill that ranks 25th.  Given the limited goaltending options out there, it’s unlikely they’ll make a move on that front and will hope for more consistency from Sam Montembeault and Jakub Dobes.  But they can certainly try to upgrade on Xhekaj and Struble for that sixth defenseman spot while adding another defensive forward (they picked up Phillip Danault to help on that front earlier this season) could help get them closer to the middle of the pack defensively which would help their late-season push to hold onto a playoff spot.